Automatic vehicle radio volume control in accordance with deflection of antenna caused by wind-drag



Feb. 24; 1959 R. E. PADGETT ETAL 2,875,330

AUTOMATIC VEHICLE RADIO VOLUME CONTROL IN ACCORDANCE WITH DEFLECTION OF ANTENNA CAUSED BY WIND-DRAG Filed March 25, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 S R O a T-/ l 0 m T I w a- WEE w M H u w 4 M m h w i E A 2 6 g 9 mm I 2 4 R O 5m e 31.1-11}- fi O W w 5 ill 1 0 w 6/ i 1- J. 5 5 .w x a I" 0N W 4 4 "a 5 7 5 7 8 W :0"

ATTORNEY 1959 R. E. PADGETT ETAL 2,875,330

AUTOMATIC VEHICLE RADIO VOLUME CONTROL IN ACCORDANCE WITH DEFLECTION OF ANTENNA CAUSED BY WIND-DRAG Filed March-25, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 TO RADIO INVENTOR ROBERT E. P406577 CLETUS .4. P406577 BY M ATTORNEY United States Patent-O AUTOMATIC VEHICLE RADIO VOLUME CON- TROL IN ACCORDANCE WITH DEFLECTION OF ANTENNA CAUSED BY WIiID-DRAG Robert E. Padgett and Cletus A. Padgett, Mulberry, Kans. Application March 25, 1958, Serial No. 723,690 15 Claims. (Cl. 250-20) This invention relates to a means for controlling the volume of a vehicle radio. More particularly, it is concerned with providing a novel arrangement for mounting a radio antenna in such a fashion on a vehicle, whereby during flexure or movement of the antenna by the air, as the vehicle travels forward at predetermined speeds, the volume of the radio will be automatically controlled and radio fadeout which normally occurs at such speeds will be eliminated.

Ordinarily, when an .automobile or other vehicle provided with a radio exceeds about 40 M. P. H. a radio fadeout will take place. This is effectively prevented by the instant invention in that the antenna for the radio is mechanically linked to the volume control'shaft for the radio in a unique fashion, whereby as the vehicle reaches a predetermined speed, such as about 40 M. P. H. and the antenna is actuated by the air, it will cause a turning of the volume control shaft and knob for the radio thereby turning up the volume on the radio without the necessity of having to manually adjust the volume control knob and shaft. Ordinarily, thefaster the vehicle moves, the greater the radio fadcout. With the automatic control system to be hereinafter described, the faster the vehicle moves, the more the antenna moves back so as to progressively increase the volume and counteract the radio fadeout.

Accordingly, it is a principal object of this invention to provide a means for connecting the outside antenna of a vehicle radio to the volume control shaft therefor, whereby, when the vehicle exceeds "the predetermined speeds at which radio fadeout normally occurs, a movement of the antenna will be eifected by the-air, and the antenna will automatically increase the radio volume and thereby counteract this radio fadeout.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a novel means including a radio antenna for automatically turning up the volume of a vehicle radio, when the vehicle exceeds a predetermined speed, so as to counteract the normal fadeout of the radio, that occurs at this predetermined speed.

It is another object of this invention to provide a novel arrangement for connecting the outside antenna of a vehicle radio to the volume control shaft therefonwhereby, when the vehicle exceeds a predeterminedspeed at which radio fadeout normally occurs, the resultant movement of the antenna by the air will automatically actuate the volume control shaft for the radio so as to counteract this fadeout and wherein novel means are also provided for mechanically disconnecting the antenna from the volume control shaft, in the event it is desired to actuate the volume control shaft manually.

These and other objects and advantages of the instant invention will become more apparent from a review of the following detailed description, when taken in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 islan elevational sectional view, partly bro ken, of the antenna mounting and radio volume control device of the instant invention anddiscloses the mechan- ,ical connection between the antenna and the radio volume control shaft;

' Figure 2 is a further sectional view with parts broken away of the antenna mounting and radio volume control device shown in Figure 1, when taken along line 2-2 thereof;

Figure 3 is a plan view of the antenna mounting device shown in Figures 1 and 2;

Figure 4 is an elevational sectional view of a suitable coupling arrangement for removably attaching the antenna to the volume control shaft for a vehicle radio;

Figure 5 is a sectional view of the coupling shownin Figure 4, when taken along line 5-5 thereof;

Figure 6 is a view similar to Figure 1 and discloses a modified arrangement for connecting the antenna to the vehicle radio;

Figure 7 is a sectional view taken along line 7-7 of Figure 6; and

Figure 8 is a schematic view of the electrical circuit for the resistor element shown in Figures 6 and 7.

With further reference to the drawings and in particular Fi ure l, the antenna mounting and radio volume control device of the instant invention is generally comprised of bottom and top mounting brackets 1 and 2 and a bracket cover 3 These brackets are mounted on the body portion of a vehicle such as a fender 4 by means of screws 5 thrust through suitable aligned openings 6 in the top bracket ,2, openings 7 drilled in the tender 4 and the threaded openings 8 in the bottom or lowermost bracket 1.

th of the brackets 1 and 2 and fender 4 are provided with additional aligned openings 9, 10 and 11 re spectively. As indicated particularly in Figure l, the opening 9 in bracket 1 comprises a well or pocket of substantial length and cross-section. This pocket may also advantageously taper downwardly and outwardly so as to rotatably accommodate a tube-like holder 12 for the lower portion of radio antenna 13. The antenna may be merely frictionally fitted within the holder 12 or if desired the interior bore 14 of the holder 12 may be somewhat tapered in an inwardly and downwardly direction so that it is somewhat frusto-conical in crosssection. In this event, the lower portion of the antenna would then have a similar configuration. The holder 12 is also'rnade' of material whereby it will be insulated from the antenna 13.

.The holder 12 is rotatably or pivotally mounted in the well 9 in bracket 1 by'means of a pin 15 which extends through the metal'loop 16 secured to the outside of antenna holder 12 with the ends of-pin 15 being inserted in a suitable opening 17 in the side wall 19 of the bracket 1 and opening 18 in, the removable side plate 20. The holder 12 is held in a neutral or at rest position by means of a compression spring 22 disposed in the recess or pocket 23 of the bracket 1. 'One end of the spring engages the metal loop 24 suitably secured to the outside of the holder 12, while the other end of the spring is wrapped about an anchoring pin 25 mounted in openings (not shown) in the side wall 19 and theside plate 29 of the bracket 1. Rotatably disposed .on the shaft 26 in another pocket 27 in the lower bracket 1 is a ratchet wheel 28. Shaft 26 is freely mounted in suitable openings 24 and 25' in the side wall 19 and side plate 20 and is ultimately connected by means of coupling 50 and flexible shaft 30 to the conventional volume control drive shaft 31 for the radio. Also secured to shaft 31 is a manual control knob 32.

Disposedin pocket 27 is aratchetarm 33, the toothed end of which engages the teeth of ratchet wheel 28 and the other vend .of whichiszpivotally linked to the holder 12 ,by means of the pin- 35, which is anchored within the metal loop 36 secured to the outside ofiholder 12.

assess;

The ratchet arm 33 is resiliently biased against the ratchet wheel 28 by means of the spring 39.

I The cover plate 3 is held in position on top of the bracket 2 by means of the screws 40 disposed in the tubular screw holders 41. The screw holders 41 which project through openings 80 and 81 in bracket 2 and fender 4, may be provided with a lower bulbous portion 42 for loosely anchoring them in a correspondingly shaped socket 33 in the lower bracket 1 so that they may pivot slightly and yet remain in contact with the bracket as the cover plate 3 moves with the holder 12 during pivoting of the latter. If desired, the cover plate 3 may be provided with ribs 42' which fit within grooves 43 in the top bracket 2. In addition to the use of screws 40 used for holding the top cover 3 in place, the upper part of antenna holder 12 may be threaded on the outside so as to accommodate a nut 45. A compression spring 46 is then disposed between the nut 45 and the cover plate 3.

If desired, a bottom cover plate 47 may also be removably secured by screws '70 to the bottom face of the lower bracket 1, in which event the cover plate 47 would then be provided with an opening 48 to accommodate the wire 49 leading from the antenna 13 to the radio proper. The cover plate 3 and the brackets 1 and 2 may be made of easily molded plastic or rubber materials. 1

The operation of the device is as follows: As the air moves or actuates the antenna 13 to the left as viewed in Figure 1, when the vehicle equipped with the present invention exceeds 40 M. P. H., the usual speed at which radio fadeout occurs, the force exerted by spring 22 against holder 12 will be overcome by the force of the air against the antenna. At this time, as the holder 12 and antenna 13 pivot counterclockwise in bracket 1, the ratchet arm 33 will be pushed to the left and in turn cause the ratchet wheel 28 to rotate in a counterclockwise direction, thereby automatically turning shafts 26 and 30 4 tenna; As long as knob 32 and shaft 31 are pushed forward, they can rotate freely in either direction.

As indicated in Figures 6-8 of the drawings, a further advantageous and the preferred embodiment of the invention contemplates that the arm 33 pivotally secured to the antenna holder 12 will also be pivotally connected by a pin 71 to the lever arm 72 for the variable slide resistor unit 73. The arm is pivoted on the pin 79 secured to one of the walls of the bracket 1. This arm also extends upwardly from the resistor contact shoes 75 slidably mounted between the side guides 76 on the insulated casing 77 for the resistor unit 73. The casing 77 in turn is suitably mounted in the recess 9 for the bracket 1.

This resistor unit-73 is also disposed as indicated particularly in Figure 8 in the antenna circuit for the vehicle radio. The antenna wire 49 passes through one of the contact shoes 75, both of which are pivotally secured by a conventional pin and slotted connection to and are insulated from the lever arm 72.

Thus, as the antenna holder 12 and the antenna 13 pivot in the manner described above, arm 33' will cause movement of the shoes 75 along resistor element 73 in a manner well known in the art so as to decrease or increase the resistance in the antenna circuit leading directly to the radio in the vehicle. This, in turn, will cause a corresponding increase or decrease in the radio volume. In the instant device,the resistor unit 73, arm 72 and shoes 75 are so adjusted that as the antenna moves backward under the influence of the wind, the resistance in the antenna circuit or wire leading to the radio is decreased and the radio volume is automatically increased in proportion to this decrease in resistance. Conversely as the antenna moves back to its normal position of rest the opposite occurs. That is, the resistor unit 73 acts to increase the resistance in the antenna circuit and to decrease the radio volume. The major advantage of using and volume control shaft 31 for the radio and increasing 7 the volume of the radio so as to counteract automatically the radio volume fadeout.

As the vehicle slows down it may be undesirable to maintain the radio volume at the level reached during the higher speeds. Accordingly, means are provided whereby the manual control knob 32 and main drive shaft 31 can be disconnected from the flexible shaft 30 so that the volume of the radio may be controlled independently of the'antenna. This may be done in the following fashion by means of a suitable coupling assembly such as that shown in Figures 4 and 5. These means comprise the split sleeve coupling 59. One part 51 of the coupling is threadedly secured to the flexible shaft 30. The other portion 52 of the coupling, which is threadedly fitted onto part 51, is provided with a chamber 53, which is adapted to receive one end of a conventional volume control shaft 31, connected to the radio proper by suitable means (not shown) since it forms no part of the instant invention. The volume control knob 32 is threadedly secured to the opposite end of this shaft. Surrounding shaft 31 and interposed between the control knob 32 and the outside wall 60 of the portion 52 of coupling 50 is a compression spring 55 which tends to force the shaft 31 and knob 32 awayfrom the coupling 50. The end of the shaft 31 in coupling chamber 53 is provided with a pin 56 which is adapted to fit in any one of a plurality of similar openings 57in the inner face 59 of the wall 60. When the pin 56 fits in any one of these openings, it automatically locks the shaft 31 to the coupling 50 and in turn to the flexible shaft 30. On the other hand, if the control knob 32 and shaft 31 are pushed forward or to the left as viewed in Figure 4, and against the action of spring 55, the pin- 56 will be released fromv one of the openings 57 and the control knob 32 and shaft 31 will. be released from connection with the anthis arrangement for connecting the antenna 13 to the radio resides in the fact that no special means need be employed for connecting the antenna to the conventional volume control shaft and the conventional volume control shaft may still be utilized for manually adjusting the radio volume independently of the antenna actuated volume controldevice hereindescribed' An advantageous embodiment of the invention has been shown and described. It will be realized, however, that various changes and modifications may bemade therein without departing from the spirit and scope thereof as defined in the appended claims.

What we claim is:

1. In a volume fadeout compensating device. for a vehicle radio, the combination of a volume control shaft for the radio, a radio antenna pivotally mounted on the vehicle in such a fashion that a portion thereof is dis posed outside of the vehicle body, means including an antenna holder for pivot-ally mounting said antenna on the vehicle, means including a ratchet mechanism mechanically linking said antenna holder and in turn said antenna to said volume control shaft for the radio, said last-mentioned means being operable upon the pivoting of the antenna and the antenna holder under the influence of the air when the vehicle reaches predetermined forward speeds to actuate the volume control shaft for the radio, whereby an increase in radio volume will be effected and the normal volume fadeout that occurs at such speeds will be counteracted.

2. A device as setforth in claim 1 wherein said mechanical linking means includes a coupling and means associated with said coupling fordisengaging said antenna and antenna holderfrom the radio volume con trol shaft, whereby said radio volume control shaft may be manually adjusted independently of the said antenna and the holder therefor.

3. In a volume fadeout compensating device for a vehicle radio, the combination of a volume control shaft for the radio, a vehicle radio antenna, means pivotally mounting the vehicle antenna on the body of the vehicle, and means connecting said antenna to the volume control shaft, said last-mentioned means being operable upon the pivoting of said antenna under the influence of the air surrounding the vehicle, when the vehicle reaches predetermined forward speeds to actuate the volume control shaft for the radio, whereby an increase in radio volume will be effected and the normal volume fadeout that occurs at high speeds will be counteracted.

4. A device as set forth in claim 3 wherein said connecting means includes a coupling and means associated with said coupling for disengaging said antenna tom the radio volume control shaft, whereby said radio volume control shaft may be manually adjusted independently of said antenna.

5. In a device of the type described, volume control means for a vehicle radio, a vehicle radio antenna, a portion of which is normally disposed outside of the vehicle body, whereby the antenna will be normally flexed and moved in a direction opposite to that in which the vehicle is traveling when predetermined forward speeds are reached by the vehicle and means connecting a part of the antenna with said volume control means, said last mentioned means being operable, when the vehicle reaches said predetermined speeds to actuate said radio volume control means in such a fashion as to increase the radio volume and thereby automatically counteract any radio volume fadeout that normally occurs at such speeds.

6. A device as set forth in claim 5 including means pivotally mounting the antenna on the vehicle.

7. A device as set forth in claim 5 including means for disengaging said antenna from said connecting means and from said radio volume control means whereby said radio volume control means may be manually adjusted independently of said antenna.

8. In a device of the type described for use in counteracting volume fadeout in a vehicle radio, the combination of a volume control shaft for the radio, a radio antenna pivotally mounted on the vehicle in such a fashion that a portion thereof is exposed, means including a ratchet mechanism mechanically linking said antenna with said volume control shaft for the radio, spring means resiliently biasing said ratchet mechanism with respect to said antenna, said mechanical linking means being operable upon the pivoting of the antenna under the influence of the air when the vehicle reaches predetermined forward speeds to actuate the volume control shaft for the radio, whereby an increase in radio volume will be effected and the normal volume fadeout that occurs at such speeds will be counteracted.

9. A device as set forth in claim 8 wherein said linking means includes a coupling and means associated with said coupling for disengaging said antenna from the radio volume control shaft, whereby said radio volume control shaft may be manually operated independently of the said antenna.

10. In a device of the type described for use in counteracting volume fadeout in a radio for a vehicle, the

combination of a volume control shaft for the radio, a radio antenna holder pivotally mounted on the vehicle, an antenna disposed within said holder in such a fashion that a portion of the antenna is exposed, means including a ratchet mechanism and a coupling for mechanically linking said antenna holder and the antenna with said volume control shaft, spring means resiliently biasing said ratchet mechanism with respect to said antenna holder, said mechanical linking means being operable upon the pivoting of the antenna holder along with the antenna under the influence of the air when the vehicle reaches predetermined forward speeds to actuate the volume control shaft for the radio, whereby an increase in radio volume will be effected and the normal volume fadeout that occurs at such speeds will be counteracted, and spring means for returning said antenna holder and the antenna to a normal position of rest when the vehicle is immobile.

11. A device as set forth in claim 10, including means associated with said coupling for disengaging said antenna holder and the antenna from the radio volume control shaft, whereby said radio volume control shaft may be manually operated independently of the antenna holder and antenna.

12. In a device of the type described, a volume control means for a vehicle radio, said control means including a vehicle radio antenna, a portion of which is normally disposed outside of the vehicle body, whereby the antenna will be normally flexed and moved in a direction opposite to that in which the vehicle is traveling, when predetermined forward speeds are reached by the vehicle and means connected to and responsive to the movements of the antenna during the flexing of the same, when the vehicle reaches said predetermined speeds for automatically increasing the radio volume and thereby counteracting any radio volume fadeout that normally occurs at such speeds.

13. The device as set forth in claim 12 wherein the means connected to and responsive to the movements of the antenna include a variable resistor element in the circuit for the antenna.

14. The device as set forth in claim 12 wherein the means connected to and responsive to the movements of the antenna include lever means pivotally secured to the antenna, a variable resistor element in the circuit for the antenna and resistor contact means actuated by said lever means pivotally secured to said antenna.

15. An antenna actuated volume fadeout compensating device for a vehicle radio comprising an antenna circuit leading to the radio, a variable resistor element in said antenna circuit, a pivotally mounted antenna and means flexibly connecting the antenna with said resistor element whereby when the antenna is flexed under the influence of the air surrounding the vehicle at predetermined speeds, said resistor element will be actuated to decrease the resistance in the antenna circuit, whereby an increase in radio volume will be effected, which will compensate for the normal volume fadeout that occurs at such speeds.

No references cited. 

